How often does emergency lighting need to be tested?

The Australian standard requires a discharge test every six months, where the fittings run on battery power for a full 90 minutes. Visual checks between those tests help pick up obvious faults early.

Why does the test take 90 minutes?

Emergency lighting is designed to keep escape routes lit for at least 90 minutes after a power failure, so the test has to run that long to prove it will. A battery that fades after 20 minutes would pass a quick switch-on check and fail when it counted.

What's the difference between an exit sign and an emergency light?

Exit signs mark the doors and show the direction of travel out of a building, while emergency lights illuminate the path leading to them. Both are essential fire safety measures and both are tested on the same schedule.

Emergency Lighting Testing in Port Stephens

Emergency lighting: AS/NZS 2293
PORT STEPHENS SURROUNDS TO LOWER HUNTER

When The Power Goes Out

Emergency lighting only earns its keep on the day the power fails and a building full of people has to find its way out. The rest of the time it sits on a wall doing nothing visible, which is exactly why it gets overlooked. At Port Stephens Fire Protection, we carry out emergency lighting testing for offices, warehouses, clubs, strata buildings and shopfronts across Port Stephens. Exit signs and emergency luminaires are inspected and discharge tested to the Australian standard, with every fitting recorded individually and any failure flagged in writing. As one of NSW's accredited Annual Fire Safety Statement certifiers, we also offer fire equipment servicing so often handle both in the one visit. Call 0460 644 635 to book a test.

Emergency lighting test switch with key turned to start a timed discharge test, red abort button illuminated

What A Test Involves

A compliance test is a good deal more than a look at the exit signs.

01
Six-monthly discharge test.
Every fitting runs on battery for the full 90 minutes the standard requires. A failing battery lights up fine for the first few minutes, so nothing shorter proves anything.
02
Illumination and condition check.
We confirm each luminaire and exit sign is clean, undamaged and still lighting the path it was installed to light. Stock stacked in front of an exit sign gets flagged too.
03
Battery and lamp replacement.
Batteries that fail the test and lamps that have blown or dimmed are replaced on the spot wherever we're carrying the part. Anything we can't finish is quoted before we leave.
04
Logbook and reporting.
Results for every fitting go into your logbook and a written report. That record is what your assessment draws on when the statement is prepared.

Illuminated green exit sign hanging in a dim corridor

0460 644 635

Call us to book an inspection, or send your details through and we'll come back to you with a time.

The Australian standard requires a discharge test every six months, where the fittings run on battery power for a full 90 minutes. Visual checks between those tests help pick up obvious faults early.
Emergency lighting is designed to keep escape routes lit for at least 90 minutes after a power failure, so the test has to run that long to prove it will. A battery that fades after 20 minutes would pass a quick switch-on check and fail when it counted.
Exit signs mark the doors and show the direction of travel out of a building, while emergency lights illuminate the path leading to them. Both are essential fire safety measures and both are tested on the same schedule.